Copenhagen’s Bybi collective uses urban beekeeping to explore the relationship between work, nature and community. Founded by Oliver Maxwell, it operates colonies across rooftops, schools, businesses and municipal buildings rather than relying on one rural apiary.
The project maintains around eighty to a hundred colonies and produces four to six tonnes of honey annually. Volunteers jar the honey and organise events, with each batch reflecting the flowers and conditions of a particular part of the city. The collective also draws people into discussions about how the work should be valued.
Some honey is sold through shops, while other batches are shared or offered through participatory pricing. Maxwell presents these practices as experiments in cooperation, not a proven replacement for the wider economy. The project combines practical production with a continuing question about how people and their local environment can thrive together.
